Young Shinichiro once had a chat about alternate realities with a local cat on a hot summer day. Years later, he discovered another cat who can speak the language of humans, and a door opens to a whole new world. Unfortunately, his guide to learning how to be a modern day Doctor Dolittle, is the unflappable and occasionally hostile Narusawa, who warns Shinichiro that his decision to learn how to talk to animals may have consequences beyond his imaginings. It all seems like fun and games at first, especially with the charming black cat, Acht, around to liven things up, but as Shinichiro and Narusawa grow closer, the complexity of both communication and the human heart begin to be revealed...

I adore animals, enjoy shounen-ai and dislike yaoi - so I was sure Voice or Noise would be a great manga that'd top my lists (further convinced by all the positive comments and high ratings). But...come on! What's so good about this? It's just another BL that tries - and fails - to be deep.

You see, I'm the kind of person who expects a manga with plot to have more plot than romance - and this story thoroughly disappointed me by tricking me into thinking it might have a lot of plot, but in the end becoming nothing more than an endless discussion about emotions (be they the couple's romantic feelings towards each other or the fear and isolation Shinchiro feels due to his powers).

As for the so-called 'animal communication'...didn't see much of that, really. Most of the time it was Shinchiro and Narusawa (with occasional interruptions from Narusawa's cat) chatting about how horrible it is to be able to understand animals...with some pesudo-scientific discourse thrown in for good measure.

The plot is slightly confusing, and jumps from place to place erratically. Its pace is too jarring considering how Yanjin Emimaru seems to be going for a slice-of-life flavour. (I read the official version, so it could hardly be due to an error in translation) Also, this is one of those stories where every single thing that happens makes the protagonists realize their love for each other

One good thing is that, like pleochroic mentioned in her comment, Narusawa kept his emotions in check and didn't come onto Shinchiro in the first two books (I wasn't interested enough to read volume 3, so I never got to the point where they actually did anything)

If you want a nice manga on being able to talk to animals, go read Animal Sense and Helen Esp - which have simple, unpretentious characters who don't try to draw parallels between their supernatural abilities and complicated scientific theorems just so the story looks smarter than it actually is. Or revisit your childhood by watching Doctor Dolittle again.For those who like a smart plot in their BL, I recommend trying out Concrete Garden.

But I won't rate Voice or Noise because...well...at least the mangaka tried to construct an original plot, which is certainly more than can be said of most BL authors.

i loved the first two volumes of this because it's an unusual story, and there's a lot of thought in between the panels. how can you not love a manga that throws schroedinger's cat into everyday conversation? most BL never talks about anything of consequence, and i didn't expect a manga about "talking with animals" to go this way, so this is refreshing; not gimicky at all. i also like how shinichiro's coming of age is handled, and the growing closeness between him and naruzawa feels very natural. and for once there is no perviness. mind, i am not usually complaining about that, but in this case i am glad the professor doesn't go for his 15-yr old protege; it would have destroyed the story. the third volume has alas turned it more into a normal BL romance, with some of the usual misunderstandings and miscommunication. though it's still not terrible, and shinichiro is at least aware that he has turned from a straightforward kid into a tongue-tied mess, and enjin pulls it out of the boring spin and fixes it in the end. the art is beautiful; i can never get enough of enjin's art. as regards the sex, there isn't any in the first two volumes, and what there is in the 3rd is largely off-screen, though the start of their big make-out session is hot and romantic. i didn't mind the lack of sex; it's an almost perfect manga for my taste. i'm curious whether it'll continue but it'd be ok to stop it here.

A really interesting exploration in what could have been a cheap Dr. Dolittle gimmick: If you can hear and listen to both humans and animals, where does the line stand? What is a voice and what is just noise?

Narusawa has obviously been seriously affected by this dilemma, and his decision was to close everyone off, it seems--*everyone* is just noise--and that decision makes him a scary man. What's more, though, all the people who know him know it, which is surprising for a manga to consider in any real depth.

This is a really interesting, complex story that takes real consideration into the "what-ifs" and takes real risks. I got caught up and really felt for these characters and where they were each coming from. Smart.

I must say I enjoy following the exploits of all the characters in this manga because they're quite charming. The art style is also refined, and not sketchy like other mangas. If you're an animal lover, you will enjoy all the animals that Enjin-sensei draws.

I read it at first expecting it to be yaoi, but there wasn't much boy on boy. Although slightly disappointed, I'm intrigued by the plot itself. It was so sad in because it couldn't communicate with any other beings except Shinichiro and Narusawa.